United Fidelity Bank, a stateside bank with offices in Indiana, Colorado, Ohio and Illinois, has entered into an agreement to buy Bank of St. Croix, according to Government House. Bank of St. Croix advertises itself on its website as "a full service, locally owned community bank." Once owned by a stateside bank, it will no longer be locally owned.
Lt. Gov. Osbert Potter, who is also chairman of the V.I. Banking Board, issued a statement Monday saying he supported the purchase. The board was notified of the planned sale on May 25, according to Government House.
UFB is a federal savings association regulated by the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency. It is headquartered in Evansville, Ind. UFB is a member of the FDIC and its transaction accounts are FDIC insured. UFB is authorized by the OCC to operate banks in Evansville, Indianapolis, Chicago, Cincinnati and Denver-Boulder.
UFB has applied to the OCC for consent to purchase the assets and assume the liabilities of BSC. UFB has requested approval from the OCC of the transaction no later than July 31, 2016.
Potter said the Office of the Lieutenant Governor’s Division of Banking and Insurance asked specific questions about the proposed acquisition and were informed that:
– There will not be any employee layoffs. The management team and the other employees of BSC will be retained. Terms of employment will be the same or better.
– The bank will continue to use the name "Bank of St. Croix.” UFB will provide more capital and financial resources for BSC and will continue to operate both BSC branches on St. Croix, which includes the Gallows Bay main branch and the Peter’s Rest branch.
– UFB’s website shows that it has many products and services. UFB, therefore, will enable BSC to offer more products, including credit cards. UFB will enable BSC to offer 30-year fixed rate mortgages, increasing its lending limits.
– UFB will provide more support services for BSC at a cost-savings, where BSC for example, was paying an off-island consultant to address federal compliance issues, UFB’s personnel will handle these issues in the future."
"We want the public to know that Bank of St. Croix is in good standing," Potter said in a statement. “We are pleased with the proposed acquisition, particularly that there will be no layoffs of current Bank of St. Croix employees, and further that United Fidelity, through the name Bank of St. Croix, will offer more banking products and services to Virgin Islands consumers.”
UFB’s application for acquisition is subject to the OCC’s review and approval.
